Deaerators remove oxygen and other entrained gases from the feedwater systems of boilers. In many commercial deaerators, feedwater is sprayed from the top of a tank, often onto horizontal trays, and steam enters the tank via a sparger. Feedwater, stripped of gases and preheated by the steam, exits near the bottom of the tank.
Typical feedwater spray nozzles include a cast or fabricated body and a conical or parabolic shaped spreader. The spreader is located within a collar on the body and biased to a closed position by a spring. Feedwater pressure moves the spreader against the bias of the spring to create an annular opening between the spreader and the collar.
Typically, deaerator spray nozzles include flanges for bolting the body to the inside of the deaerator tank or are threaded into a coupling or similar mounting component. There is a general need for improved deaerator spray nozzles that are more easily installed within a deaerator.